The girls that said something to me about it said he was very graphic in what he wanted from them. What got him thrown off of the ship was he had given out his room number to these girls and that way they were able to know that they had the correct person.

The story I heard about the woman here was, her husband died and had nothing as far as insurance or retirement goes. She had always been a stay at wife. They had no children. So, after the shock of losing her husband and realizing she had no skills she decided the only way she could possibly survive was to panhandle. From what I remember, I think she made on average between $400 to $500 a day doing it. So from what I got fromthe reports was she was not trying to scam anybody she was just trying to survive.

ahh, didn't know that. I really don't think anyone begging is scamming, after all, they are just asking for money.

this is getting off topic (imagine that!) but as much as I feel for the that lady's situation, I don't think it is an excuse for begging. In any other country maybe, but not here. As long as she is able to work, she should be working, not living off others' charity.

I will have to say I am pretty much on the fence with your opinion here. It seems that she would only be able to get a job cleaning houses, maybe being a nanny for someone, then of course there is the retail jobs. All of which she would not be able to make as much money in and she more than likely would lose her house. So should she have gone out and gotten a job and sold her house and moved into an apartment or a lesser valued home? That is a tough question for anyone.

Everyone of those jobs you mentioned are honorable and actually I know several folks that make a great living cleaning houses ( they work for themselves of course). There are other ways to subsidise income....ie: rent out a room, etc.

One other thing about the lady on the corner is that she's being a lot more straight forward and honest about wanting money from people than most well dressed salesman i've dealt with !

Babe Ruth, nope, nada, wrong, i paid high dollar for all of Princesses 5 pools & they still had 10 chairs per pool for all 2500 guests & the only guests using the chairs were the towel people. Is not based on a cheap cruise w/one pool & 300 chairs for 2000 people

I personally haven't ever removed anyones belongings but while I am sitting in my undesirable chair on the upper level, I had been watching whose chairs have been unoccupied for more than an hour with as little as a towel left on them. At this point my husband and I go down and ask the near by sunbathers if these chairs are theirs and if they know if they are coming back? If they don't know, we put the dirty towels up and sit in our new "poolside seats"!

I have to tell you that we have had people come up to us and say that we "were in their chairs"?! At this point we say that no one was here when we sat down, sorry! Then the people that were sitting near by say to us "Good for You"!

If people are going to be gone for more that an hour for anything other than eating than they need to take everything with them and when they return they can join the fun of search for a lounge chair!

These are the same people that send one person in line at the amusement park and when it is almost time to get on the ride, they let in 8 other people to "cut in front of them"! What are we teaching our children when parents show their kids that this behavior is exceptable? Do as we say, not as we do???

Why don't we just put all the gold & silver in one room & put all the white trash in another room? To throw gold towels on rows & rows of chairs in the front for the 'golds' that don't show up??? Aren't we back to the 'chair hogs'??? Golds have their lil perks, that is what they pay for. To have gold colored deck chairs that only a person with a gold key can use?? such BS Why don't we just make the front half of the ship for the golden boys only. Why cruising sucks, to have 3k people in one little area & way to many people judging the others (the golden boys judging the whites that know how to have fun)

I think the cruise lines are missing out on a perfect nickel and diming profit center. Sell all the charis around the pools for $50 per week, they could then prorate them down the further from the pool you are.

Someone thinks they deserve the 'best seats' all over the ship cause they paid a little more than the next guy & he is superior to the rest of the pee-ons on the ship. We are talking about paying for a room & everyone on the ship paid to be there & to enjoy. Is your choice to purchase the 'extras' NO I am not paying for the most expensive room so I can brag about it. I just need a place to sleep & the rest of the time I just want a place on deck to sit an relax with a drink & I do NOT want the golden seats, put me with the fun people. Ohhh the superior (in their own minds), this is why cruising sucks. Why do I do it? I don't fly & I want to take my grown daughter to see the beautiful Caribbean (yeah I am paying for TWO cabins, am superior this time?) So till they build a bridge from N O to Cozumel I guess I will go by boat. We spent ALOT of money on our first cruise with Princess, did that make me better than the guy across from me that bought the cheap OMG inside cabin????? NOOOO The people that you come here and gripe about after your cruise... ever think they do some of the chit just to tick you off because of your superior attitude? I can see I don't want to cruise Celebrity

I have just returned from the 4/29/05 Empress of the Seas repositioning cruise and have a nomination for the "All Time Chair Hog(s)." The Wildcat Junior Hockey Team from Windsor, Ontario, was on board. The group included the team and family members. By 8 o'clock in the morning on sea days, someone with the group had reserved rows of chairs with the team tee shirts stretched over the back of the lounge chairs. On the 5/4 sea day, I stopped counting the number of chairs recserved at 40 (I estimate approximately 70 chairs were reserved).

At 11 o'clock, I couldn't find a chair; so I went to a chair with a tee shirt, pulled the shirt off and carried the chair to a spot in the shade. I did hear a voice call out, " Excuse me, we are saving that chair" but paid no attention.

Celebritycruiser, you paid more to get a suite, you are getting the better, bigger cabin,, that is why you pay more, the ship is for everyone, but the cabin is just for you.

On Princess the key cards are different colours, but not based on what you paid, it is based on if you are a repeat cruiser.

I do think that the ships could make lots of extra money by selling chairs by the pool,, but lets not tell them that!

Readytoretire, I would have been p*ssed, and I would have pointed out the problem to the deck staff, it should just not be allowed, especially with groups that size, it is bad enough when two or three chairs are " saved" but to save entire rows is DISGUSTING!
I persoanlly wouldn't have the gall to behave that way( saving seats for more then just my hubby who has left for 10 minutes to get a drink etc.) I could never say " that seat is saved "when I knew no one was coming right away. I get embarrased when hubby went to cabin to get a book and I had to tell someone " seat is saved" , couldn't wait for hubby to return.

celebritycruiser - I think they have "been there-done that". The ships used to be separated into classes - First Class, Tourist and Steerage. I, for one, would not like to see that happen again. To think beause you paid more for a suite you should have priority seating anywhere is definately "high falutin" as my Granny used to say. And, IMHO - you did come off as sounding eliteist. We are all created equal - but some think they are more equal than others - go figure. Seat saving is wrong but easily correctable - sit down and let the "saver" make a fuss - he or she is going to look pretty stupid. TTFN Jennifer

Probably because the "public areas" on the ship are just that "public". What if your section was reserved for you and you didn't show up - now there are empty seats someone could have taken advantage of (oops excuse the danging participle!)? Just because someone can't afford the higher end accomodations doesn't mean the other facilities should be changed. What about food? Should you get better food and service in the dining room? How about if we just relegate all the "inside roomers" to the buffet area and keep the dining rooms for "balconies and up"? Not gonna work - nor should it. Class distinction is a thing of the past - not class itself. Real class has nothing to do with being able to pay more for something. That just means you have more money to spend. We, for example, would have had a lot more money in the bank if we had not had a daughter with severe handicaps. We lost her and funerals are expensive. Cruising is not about the money. It's about everyone getting together and having agreat time and being treated as special!!! TTFN Jennifer

You pay more to get a bigger cabin, you've paid more and get priority boarding, you pay more and get better seats at a show (theater etc, not on ship). I think basic necessities should be equal for everyone, as health care is in our country.

But for everything else, whether it's your clothes, your car, your house, or your steak, you get what you pay for.

I don't mean kind of mandarin showy stuff but just stuff that you pay for and can enjoy
Why is it frowned upon to get more stuff when you pay more?

Is there a reason why the cruise line do not provide enough chairs at pools and seats at shows? They (the cruise line) must know the capacity of the ship and something about creating a comfortable, hospitable environment. Because fighting around the pool for limited resoures does not sounds like a fun vacation, it sounds more like a bad episode of Survivor. Are there cruises that offer adequate chairs without charging extra for, what I call, a very basic service? I'm checking out different cruises for the right one. Or maybe cruising isn't for me, I'm just looking at what's out there. Thank you.
Ella

On the Queen Mary 2, the Queens Grill may be used only by Q-category guests, and the Princess Grill by P-category.

I don't see this as any class distinction, but merely offering a different level of service/convenience for customers who pay a premium. There's no reason this concept wouldn't work in the auditorium, IMO.

there will always be people who will save chairs. no matter what the signs say! i am one of the people who will sit in my chair the whole day, except for a dip in the pool, bathroom break and lunch but otherwise i'm there, i dont go missing for hours! and i watch those "empty chairs", with a book and a towel on it sit there empty for hours-that's not fair!! and they are usually the best chairs by the pool facing the sun at all hours of the day!!!!!!!!!!shame on you pool chair hogs!!!

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soveriegn of the sea-may 2001
star princess-march 2006 (the best so far)
enchantment of the sea-september 2006
radiance of the sea-march 2007
voyager of the sea-september 2007

As far as going down one deck to retireve another chair, i should have explained better...I went down one deck and got a regular chair from the restaurant area. That was in addition to, in reality more than 2 deck chairs.....See usually i get a deck chair for me and my wife, Then i get 2 for towels and such...which kinda saves them for anyone i deem cool enough to be near me....then i get the regular chair because i like to sit in it.

Hope that explains it...sorry for the lapse in time.....

Surprised no one responded to this post. If a crew member tells you not to move a chair and haul it up a flight of stairs, then you shouldn't. A deck chair for the two of them is fine, but 2 for towels and such???...just in case someone cool comes along. I really hope gogetter was joking, or he is the chaise-hog we are criticizing.

When we did our first cruise on the Victory let me tell you we walked and we walked and walked some more looking for a chair, yet on the Liberty we had no problem what so ever finding a chair. One occassion we could only find 2 and we needed four, so we just ended up sharing. I even layed out on the deck for a while too. Not my suggestion, back is still paying for it. My husband is an early riser so finding a chair ( on sea days) is not a problem for us. While he is locating chairs, I am getting breakfast.
The funny thing over all is there is signs that state NO Chair saving, why is this not enforced. For that matter I think all the chairs that are closest to the waterslide should be for those that have children cause being a parent that is where my kids stayed most of the day. But, that is just my opionion.
Chair saving is rude, but think it will be here today tomorrow and 10 years from now we will still have this problem. To the person that tried to save 15 chairs...OMG.. shame on you.

[i]When I go to the pool deck and cant find a chair, I simply toss the persons towel aside and jump right in. An hour or two later when that person comes to claim their chair I simply say it was empty when I found it.[/i]

I usually try to stay away from all the noise at the main pool. Kids, loud bands and chess games etc. But...... when I have occasionally laid out for awhile they do seem to be all filled up with guests, or should I say guests belongings. Well, since I went to breakfast at 9am and by 12pm the same towel, book etc are still not moved, I WILL MOVE IT.

lol... too funny. I hope you are a little old lady or a very bad dude. Seek confrontation and ye shall find it Deb and I usually avoid the "pool" area..to congested with kids, over sized women in small swim suits and pot belly men. Once or twice during our cruise, we will visit the pool area when we need a good laugh.
Already packed for our 11 nights on the Connie...29 Jan!! WooHoo If you see us, we will be the perfect looking couple that everyone wishes to be.

Just had to put my two cents in.......just got back from Serenade of the Seas RCI, the one and only day at sea and I wanted to lay by the VERY SMALL sea water pool. Got out there about 10am, no chairs available anywhere!! Tons of happy towels bathing in the sun on those chairs, but not many people. Sat on the edge of the pool for a good hour watching and waitng with ready feet to run to a chair that someone might leave and actually pack their stuff along with them. Looked and waited for to see just a plain blue chair all by itself with nothing on it. Waited, waited, and waited. Finally, I asked someone that was laying next to four towel taken chairs (that were getting nicely tanned and looked quite comfortable) - if anyone was actually using them. I was told by this gentleman that he was saving them for his wife and her friends while they went to lunch and to play BINGO. I was pissed. Normally, I am a happy go lucky kind of girl but after waiting an hour and a half for a chair and actually wanting to use it and not leave, I became a bit upset. I promptly went to the attendant and told him what was going on, he went over and spoke with the husband, the towels were removed and I had my chair as well as three other people that had been patiently waiting for an empty chair. I cant believe people can be so rude and inconsiderate. Yeah, I know they had it first, but if you aren't even going to use it and you leave...then it should be available for someone else to enjoy. Next time I will leave my formal clothes at home and pack a chair!!

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Deb

Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely, in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, wine in one hand, chocolate in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming..... WOO HOO, WHAT A RIDE!!